Santa Anita Stable Notes Friday, June 13, 2025

STABLE NOTES BY VICTOR RYAN

FRIDAY, JUNE 13, 2025

Motorious; Benoit

D’AMATO BARN SET FOR BUSY WEEKEND WITH 21 RUNNERS ENTERED
WORKS: GOAL ORIENTED, CASALU DRILL FOR BAFFERT
TRAINER GLATT WINS 3 RACES ON THURSDAY’S CARD
12:30 P.M. FIRST POST SATURDAY, SUNDAY FOR 12-RACE CARDS

D’AMATO BARN SET FOR BUSY WEEKEND WITH 21 RUNNERS

With 21 horses entered over the next three days at Santa Anita, it’s going to be a busy weekend for the Phil D’Amato barn to close out the Hollywood Meet.

The D’Amato brigade includes runners in both stakes Saturday plus the comebacking Thought Process, a multiple stakes winner who hasn’t started since the Breeder’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf in November. Thought Process, who was scratched from last Saturday’s GIII Summertime Oaks on dirt, makes her belated return in Saturday’s fourth race, a one-mile allowance on turf for 3-year-old fillies. Thought Process is the 3-5 morning line favorite.

Later on Saturday’s card, D’Amato has another morning-line favorite making his seasonal debut in the GIII Daytona. Motorious, who was second by a neck in last year’s Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint, is the 6-5 morning line favorite in what will be his first start since winning the GII Joe Hernandez on Dec. 28 at Santa Anita. Like the Joe Hernandez, the Daytona is also contested at about 6 ½ furlongs on the hillside turf course. Motorious, a 7-year-old gelding, will have Antonio Fresu aboard.

“Hopefully he’s ready for a good comeback. This should be a good spot to get him started,” said D’Amato, who enters closing weekend with a six-win lead in the trainer’s standings at the Hollywood Meet.

The Daytona goes as the 10th race on a 12-race card Saturday. Post time is set for 5:08 p.m. PT. The field in post position order: Air Force Red, Armando Ayuso (8-1); Bran, Umberto Rispoli (9-2); Goliad, Mike Smith (7-2); Daniel’s Magic, Kyle Frey (30-1); Stay Hot, Juan Hernandez (6-1); Lovesick Blues, Geovanni Franco (10-1); Motorious, Antonio Fresu (6-5); Watsonville, Kazushi Kimura (30-1).

In Saturday’s Possibly Perfect for fillies and mares at 1 ¼ miles on turf, D’Amato has three runners in 5-2 second choice Starry Heavens, Kentucky Gal (3-1) and longshot Paris Secret (15-1). Starry Heavens will be making her third start in the U.S. after a pair of promising effort. She finished third in the GIII Santa Ana at 1 ¼ miles in March then was second to Mrs. Astor in the 1 ½-mile Santa Barbara on May 4. Mrs. Astor is also entered in the Possibly Perfect and is the 6-5 favorite. However, Mrs. Astor is cross entered in Sunday’s GIII San Juan Capistrano against males at about 1 ¾ miles on turf where she is also favored. On Friday morning, trainer Jonathan Thomas said he was leaning toward the Possibly Perfect but had not made a final decision.

As for Starry Heavens, she will break from the outside post in a potential bid to turn the tables on Mrs. Astor.

“Starry Heavens is proven at the distance and is training well, but we still have to beat Mrs. Astor and hopefully we can do it,” D’Amato said.

Kentucky Gal exits a career-best performance winning a first-level allowance at 1 ¼ miles on turf April 27. Both Kentucky Gal and Starry Heavens had Fresu aboard for their most recent starts. The jockey elected to stick with Starry Heavens in the Possibly Perfect. Juan Hernandez takes over aboard Kentucky Gal.

“(Fresu) had the option and thought Starry Heavens was just a little more accomplished,” D’Amato said. “But it was tough. Kentucky Gal is an up-and-comer.”

The Possibly Perfect goes as the sixth race at 3:06 p.m. The field in post position order: Kentucky Gal, Juan Hernandez (3-1); Mrs. Astor, Umberto Rispoli (6-5); Queen Leca, Kazushi Kimura (20-1); Mahina, Hector Berrios (5-1); Paris Secret, Armando Ayuso (15-1); Starry Heavens, Antonio Fresu (5-2).

WORKS: GOAL ORIENTED, CASALU DRILL FOR BAFFERT

Goal Oriented, fourth in the Preakness Stakes on May 17, and multiple stakes winner Casalu were among the notable horses to record timed workouts Friday at Santa Anita.

Trained by Bob Baffert, Goal Oriented worked four furlongs in 47.20 seconds, which was the fastest of 25 moves at the distance. It was his second work since the Preakness. By Not This Time, Goal Oriented in the Preakness finished an even fourth in what was just his third start and first in a stakes.

Stablemate Casalu worked four furlongs on the training track in 49.80. Freshened after winning the Sweet Life Stakes in February, this was Casalu’s fourth work since May 22.

Also working for Baffert was Hope Road, who is back at Santa Anita after a pair of stakes tries at Churchill Downs. The 4-year-old Quality Road filly drilled four furlongs in 48.0 seconds. It was her first work since finishing third in the GIII Winning Colors on May 26 at Churchill Downs. Previously, she was second in the GI Derby City Distaff on May 3.

Returning to the work tab after a freshening was multiple graded stakes winner Truly Quality. Trained by Jonathon Thomas, Truly Quality drilled three furlongs in 37.0 seconds. It was his first work since finishing off the board in the GIII San Marcos on Feb. 8. Previously, the 5-year-old Quality Road gelding won three consecutive stakes including the GII Hollywood Turf Cup in November at Del Mar and the GIII Singspiel at Woodbine in October.

TRAINER GLATT WINS 3 RACES ON FRIDAY CARD

Trainer Mark Glatt enjoyed a successful afternoon at the races Friday when saddling three winners on a nine-race card. Glatt now ranks fifth in the trainer’s standings with 13 wins at the Hollywood Meet.

Glatt scored in the opener with Agency ($5.40), the fourth race with Sareeha ($4.60) and the seventh race with Super Ellie ($11.80). Glatt is now 13-for-72 at the stand (18 percent).

At the preceding Classic Meet, which ended, April 6 Glatt won 31 races to claim his second Santa Anita trainer’s title. He also was the leading trainer at the 2023 Autumn Meet.

A 52-year-old native of Auburn, Wash., Glatt enters Friday with 1,329 wins and more than $52.5 million in purse earnings. In August, Glatt is slated to be inducted into the Washington Racing Hall of Fame.

FINISH LINES: With expanded 12-race cards set for both Saturday and Sunday, first post each day is at 12:30 p.m. PT. With Sunday being closing day of the Hollywood Meet, there will be mandatory payouts in all pari-mutuel pools…Friday’s $1 Coast-to-Coast Pick 5 starts at 1:37 p.m. with the eighth race from Gulfstream Park…Sunday’s feature is the GIII San Juan Capistrano Stakes at about 1 ¾ miles on turf. It goes as the 10th race at approximately 5 p.m. PT.

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